KOCHI: When the pandemic hit, it came with many hardships for the entire world. People started losing their jobs in one of the worst global crisis. Financial struggles became the norm in many households. For Geetha Saleesh, the situation was no different. Even when the financial crisis tried to bog her and her family down, visually impaired Geetha stood firm and decided to look past the crisis.
‘Home to Home,’ a homegrown business started last year by the Thrissur native, accompanied by her husband Saleesh Kumar, who is a medical representative, and children, Gazal and Gaya, has been proving that if you have a will, everything will fall into place eventually. The budding entrepreneur had lost her vision during her school days.
“Due to Covid, financially, many of us were on the same page. I always had the idea of starting something on my own. Though I have looked for jobs, more than being at work in an office, I prefer working along with my family,” says Geetha, who used to run a restaurant ‘Flora’, which used to sell a line of healthy juices and food.
Booming venture
Home to Home runs in the limited space of her household and sells Quail egg pickles, ghee, virgin coconut oil, and an immunity booster manjal varagiyathu — a lehyam, that can be consumed by anyone, irrespective of age. “Last August, I started selling eggs from quails and hens reared in our home to the local stores. When Covid restrictions were imposed, I started to think of alternatives. I get around 100 eggs from the quail. And the idea struck to make pickles out of them,” Geetha says.
“Whatever the crisis be, instead of giving up, take it as a second chance and do something about it with the resources you have,” the budding entrepreneur says.
Once the orders started pouring in Geetha soon ventured into ghee and other products and named her small-scale business Home to Home. “I decided to continue with the venture as I was happy. The products also started to receive positive responses,” says Geetha. The online-based venture currently runs primarily on Whatsapp and Facebook. “Before making a batch, I’ll post on Whatsapp groups regarding the item. Considering the orders I’ll start making them,” adds Geetha.
Crossing borders
Within several months, Geetha’s homemade products started receiving orders even from Gujarat and Maharashtra. “I make around 2kg of pickles and sell 200g per bottle. With 24 litres of milk, I process ghee from the butter churned out of curd,” she says. The items are properly packed and are sent via courier.
The 39-year old’s efforts got noticed and were appreciated by the former Finance Minister Thomas Issac, Higher Education Minister R Bindhu. With time, Geetha wishes to expand Home to Home as a large-scale business. “In the future, I wish, to employ more differently-abled people to make them financially independent,” says Geetha. “If you have an idea do not wait for the ‘right time’. Start small, and gradually you’ll grow,” says Geetha.
Visit her Facebook page: Home to Home Contact: 09946418035